Vickers Steel has its origins back into the mid 18th century and really came into being after a separation in 1829 of George Portus Naylor from Naylor and Sanderson. In 1823(1829?) Naylor then partnered with Hutchinson and brothers Edward & William Vickers to found the Naylor, Vickers, & Company at the Don Steel Works in Sheffield, where there may have been an older facility used by Sanderson & Naylor.
In 1856 Mr. Edward Vickers handed the reins of the company to his oldest son Colonel T.E. Vickers, who along with his brother Albert Vickers, ran the company. In 1863 new construction was began at Brightside(at or near the River Don Works??) near Sheffield and completed by 1865. Subsequently in 1867 Naylor, Hutchinson, Vickers & Company was transformed into Vickers, Sons & Company Limited. Vickers, Sons & Company saw very prosperous times in the 1870s and became big in the armament business adding the Barrow Shipbuilding Compnay in the late 1870s and in 1897 acquired Maxim, Rodenfelt Guns and Ammunition Company. Also during the 1870s Vickers looks to have been a big exporter to the U.S. of A. In 1887 Naylor, Vickers, & Company/Vickers, Sons & Company’s skilled craftsmen were noted as only being 2nd to the very skilled craftsmen at the Bochum Company of Prussia.
In the 1890s Vickers, Sons & Company touted they could totally build and fully arm a battleship. Prior to 1905 there was some merger of W. Beardmore & Company and shipbuilder R. Napier & Sons in 1900 at Parkhead Forge which was established in 1842. Mr. Williams and Joseph Beardmore and Vickers, Sons, & Maxium were all intertwined. I'm sure there were other subs.
It was Vickers, Sons & Maxium up till 1911 when a reorganization yielded Vickers Limited, then Vickers-Armstrong Limited in 1927 and a subsequent merger with Sir W.G. Armstrong, Whitworth & Company limited about the same time. Circa 1908 Vicker’s steel was noted as being composed of black oxide of manganese, ground charcoal and iron scrap. Vickers’ had a nickel steel, nickel chrome steel and a New nickel chrome steel. Some test report that Vickers’ steel were superior to Krupp’s(which steel I can’t say) in contraction & elongation. Compression was used by most makers and overall there may not have been a dime’s worth of difference between any two. Whitworth was purchased/used when money wasn’t of any object.
Kind Regards,
Raimey
rse
